Jan. 30 (Bloomberg) -- Pan Africa Insurance Holdings Ltd.,
the Kenyan unit of South African insurer Sanlam Ltd., gained the
most in almost four weeks after it was recommended buy in new
coverage by Standard Investment Bank Ltd.

Shares of the Nairobi-based company rose 1.8 percent to
42.25 shillings, the most since Jan. 4, at the close in Nairobi.
About 15,800 shares changed hands, or 133 percent of the three-month daily average, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

Pan Africa is Standard Investment Bank’s top stock pick
among publicly traded insurers because its share price has the
largest margin for potential growth compared to its peers,
research analyst Brenda Kithinji said at a presentation today.
The price target for the stock is 74.70 shillings, she said.

The company’s market share for life insurance is estimated
to reach 15.1 percent by 2015, compared with 11.8 percent in
2011, according to the report, boosted by products such as a
funeral cover package. The life assurance business is forecast
to have grown 45 percent to 5.28 billion shillings ($60.3
million) this year.